2 Doctors, Formerly Of Plymouth, Killed In Costa Rica Plane Crash

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA — The tragic plane crash in Costa Rica this weekend killed 12 people, including two doctors who previously lived in Plymouth Meeting. The family, which moved to Belleair, Fla. in 2005, were identified as radiologist Mitchell Weiss, 52, and his wife, pediatrician Leslie Weiss, 50, and their children Hannah Weiss, 19, and Ari Moses Weiss, 16.

The Nature Air sightseeing plane departed on Sunday afternoon from Punta Islita, bound for San Jose when it crashed in the woods of Guanacaste, said Enio Cubillo, director of Costa Rica Civil Aviation. All 12 people — including two local crewmembers — on board were killed.

Mitchell and Leslie Weiss had previously lived in Plymouth Meeting and Lafayette Hill, CBS News first reported. The couple left the Philadelphia area around 2005, relocating to Belleair, according to public records.

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The Congregation B'nai Israel in Saint Petersburg, which the Weiss family attended, mourned their deaths.

"It is with profound sadness that we share the news of the tragic passing of Dr. Leslie and Dr. Mitchell Weiss and their two children Hannah and Ari in a plane crash in Costa Rica yesterday," the Congregation said in a statement on Facebook. "This family was so bright and kind and will be missed by so many."

Officials are continuing to look into what could have caused the plane to crash.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report. Patch correspondent Don Johnson also contributed to this report.

(AP Photo/Berny Araya)